The secularisation of schools in Avesnois-Thierache in the 19th Century

The border area of the Avesnois-Thierache, marked by history, led its rural population, individualistic, malthusian and willingly rebellious, to rely only on itself. At the end of the Revolution, it was a land of mission for the Brothers of the Christian Schools and the Sisters of Saint Theresa of Avesnes. The Republican spirit was awakened around 1848 but the prosperity of the Second Empire ensured order, morality and stability with the well-established Congregational teaching. The secularisation process of the communal schools began in 1880, through the replacement of ageing Congregationalist staff by the young cohorts of normalist teachers. But also through the construction of new buildings by municipal councils, which had become predominantly Republican. In industrialised and more populated areas, secularisation led to the creation of free schools maintained by local notables. The ban on congregations then led to an exodus towards nearby Belgium.